Excellent background article about the economics of e-books and the direct impact on authors and agents in this morning's Wall Street Journal here:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...987870022.html
Most articles focus on publishers; this one brings in some data about agents fees and authors. It's a bit negative in places, and rehashes some of the "woe is me" stuff in an attempt to "threaten" authors, but on balance it's full of interesting bits. And clearly the message is the world is changing. The article does not suggest a return to 1990s business model will work.
It also makes a few silly claims: that online browsing such as at Amazon's storefront make it difficult to stumble upon new authors and gems that you could find in a bricks and mortar store. This one is patently silly for anyone who has actually compared the experience. There is simply far more to explore at Amazon than even the biggest physical store -- and lots of reader recommendations, some intelligence behind the recommendation engine for repeat visitors, and simply a lot more content that would never be in a regular store.
The article is worth a read.